Quote Originally Posted by Rufalus View Post
In a way, FF XIV is the Final Fantasy series now. The time gaps between the new numbered single player games has become very large (XIII to XV to XVI) but we have a new XIV expansion story every 2-3 years. As such I wish they'd break the formula more to provide new experiences and narrative styles within this game.

I think guest writers and creators would help challenge conventions. XIV has become very stuck in predictable tropes or 'anime moments' which is also why people disliked the last third of XVI. We've seen the power of friendship pull through many times, we've seen mysterious hooded person watching from a distance. We need some surprising new outcomes.
I'd like them to be bolder but at the moment they seem overly obsessed with the idea of catering to new players even at the expense of those who have been playing for a while. I think they've dug themselves a deep whole that they can't really climb out of, since they've attracted a lot of players similar to the one above your post where any nuance and depth is either loathed or ignored in favour of reductionist takes that reframe even the most complex moral predicament as black and white storytelling.

That isn't helped, of course, by the writers themselves often turning entire nations or individuals into complete caricatures - and that's not a problem exclusive to the antagonists. G'raha is perhaps one of the most prominent examples of a character hijacked in such a manner.

The writers seem outright terrified of changing the status quo where the Scions are concerned. If we get a new character on board, it isn't long before they adopt the exact same opinions and beliefs as the rest of the Scions. Zero intrigued me for all of five minutes - a more mercenary individual was a refreshing change of pace and a reflection of an actual personality type that exists in the real world. Instead of letting her remain as such we had a rather infantile story arc where she learns what a 'friend' is.

It's not the sort of storytelling that drew me to this setting back in the days of ARR.

Add in the lack of stakes, lasting consequences and risk of death for the protagonists and it leads to a situation where there's a degree of stagnation rarely seen in other MMO's.

Ideally the game should be more willing to seek to please a broader variety of personal tastes. Not every character or faction is going to appeal to absolutely everybody and that's perfectly fine - but their current model basically screws over everyone who isn't fond of the Scions to some extent. The cast is too bloated to the point where even when it makes sense for a different character deeply tied to a specific thing to show up they're lucky to get a cameo or brief acknowledgement in dialogue.